Ken Martin, a candidate for the Democratic National Committee chair, is calling for a “massive narrative and branding project” to improve the party’s tarnished brand.
Martin, the head of Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, released a 10-point memo on Tuesday, laying out his pitch to DNC members for what he wants to change at the party’s national headquarters. The details of the memo were shared first with POLITICO.
Martin is one of four declared candidates running for DNC chair, which will mark Democrats’ first opportunity to define their response to the party’s abysmal performance in 2024. Ben Wikler, chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, joined the race on Sunday. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and New York state Sen. James Skoufis are also running.
Several other Democrats, including Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, former Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) and Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha are all also considering bids.
But Martin, who served as the president of the Association of State Parties, has emerged as an early frontrunner in the race. His campaign said he’s locked down endorsements from at least 100 DNC members, a figure that his competitors have not disputed and that represents nearly half of what a candidate needs to win the race.
Martin’s candidate memo, titled “A New DNC Framework,” hits several themes espoused by Democrats for years, like doubling down on a 50-state strategy, focusing on non-federal races, energizing youth mobilization and investing in year-round organizing in every county. It also calls for examining “our spending with a fine-tooth comb” and “a rigorous, open, and effective primary process to battle-test our candidates to prepare them to win,” a nod to the chair’s role in presiding over a new primary calendar. Martin had been critical of Rep. Dean Phillips’ (D-Minn.) longshot primary campaign against President Joe Biden, who many Democrats now fault for running for a second term.
Though the memo calls for a shake-up of the party’s national brand, it’s light on details for what that might actually entail.
“The majority of Americans now believe the Republican Party best represents the interests of the working class and the poor, and the Democratic Party is the party of the wealthy and the elites. It’s a damning indictment on our party brand,” the memo reads. “We must be willing to dig deep and recenter the Democratic agenda to unite families across race, age, background, and class.”
It does, however, call for making state party chairs and executive directors full-time paid positions, as well as establishing a “standardized digital platform to democratize the digital ad-buying process.”
The memo also urges Democrats to “show up in nontraditional and uncomfortable media spaces on a regular basis, increase outreach to local messengers and trusted validators, and create our own platforms for authentic engagement.” Wikler, as a part of his own candidate launch, also emphasized the importance of Democrats “[becoming] the narrator” of their own brand by showing up in conservative media spaces.
The DNC election will be held on Feb. 1, during the committee’s winter meeting in Maryland. The DNC plans to host four candidate forums throughout January.
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